No local Republican Candidates in ’08?

I admit to at least one political conflict of interest. I am constantly advocating that the Marin-Sonoma Republican parties recruit candidates for local partisan posts. I do so for two reasons. The first is that I am an advocate of the two party system, and sometimes even of the three and four party system. I have always believed that the give-and-take between candidates, even in geographical areas where one of the two major parties dominates, produces better public policy and a healthy civic culture. Second is my purely personal and selfish reason. I write a column on North Bay politics and I need to have some Republicans challenge the local Democrats in November. Without these Republicans, I have much less to write about.

Right now it appears that no Republicans, not a single one, is interested in running for any of these posts

Thus, I reach out to my Republican friends. Please find someone, anyone, to run for the State Assembly in the Marin-Southern Sonoma Sixth Assembly District, for the state senate in the Marin-Eastern San Francisco-Sonoma Third Senate District and for U.S. Congress in the Marin-Sonoma Sixth Congressional District.

Its embarrassing right now to find that absolutely no one is interested in representing the Grand Old Party in the North Bay. Its not that there are no Republicans in Marin or Sonoma, though admittedly they are far from making an electoral majority.

If political parties have any rationale for existence, its to field candidates, advocate their platform and become relevant even if actual ballot box victory is only a distant dream. So Republican readers, now is the time to act. Your chance for a limited amount of glory, a lot of fun, a few complementary appointments to the local Republican Central Committee, as well as fulfilling a patriotic duty await you, and you dont even have to worry about the future burdens of public office.

Aside: I had doubts that ther would be time in 2008 for any grass roots presidential politics in a state as large as California. I just learned that the Barack Obama camapign will have two volunteers-manned booths in Mill Valley this Saturday, one at the Downtown Book Depot and the other at Whole Foods. It’s just one more sign of the intense interst in this priamry, particularly on the part of Golden State Democrats.

3 Responses to No local Republican Candidates in ’08?

For all practical purposes the Republican party doesn’t presently function as substantive political force in Marin and the lack of Republican candidates is a tacit acknowledgement of the situtation. Presently, there are only different factions of the Democratic party and the most powerful of all, the elephant in the room, the Green Lobby Party aka Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth, etc. It is almost impossible for a middle of the road Republican candidate to win in Marin. Why pretend otherwise. Several would be middle of the road office seeking Republicans realized the situation and have become poser Democrats to have any chance of success. Marin’s present political situation may resemble the party politics of the Deep South in the 50’s, i.e. total dominance by one party with the elephant in the room (Sierra Club in Marin and race in the South). Besides, Marin’s “taken for granted” politics don’t matter. The Marin politicans are willing courtesans to San Francisco politics.

Suppose that instead of one member of the Assembly from a district covering Marin and southern Sonoma counties, we had three members from a district covering a larger territory. (We could easily justify expanding the Assembly from 80 to 240 seats instead of enlarging the districts, but that’s a separate — and very controversial — step.)

Using ranked choice voting, Republicans and Democrats would almost always get at least one seat apiece. Everyone except the Greens and Libertarians would get representation they actually voted for. (For small party representation, we’d need 5 to 7 seats per district.)

From 1870 to 1980, Illinois elected it’s state legislature from three-member districts (using cumulative voting rather than ranked choice). Chicago Republicans had representation. So did downstate Democrats.

Representation you actually voted for: what a concept! It’s called proportional representation, and it’s how most of of the world’s mature democracies elect their legislatures.

Things don’t have to be the way they are for Marin County Republicans, or El Dorado County Democrats either.

Bob: That could be done with a state constitutional amendment. I don’t beleive that Illinois was the only state that ever used multi-seat legislative districts. Certainly other western parliamentary democracies have used that model. A much larger state assembly with less per member pay, perks and staff per member makes a lot of sense. Right now every Assembly distict has about 450,000 citizens. The state of Montana has a population of 950,000 and a lower legislative house with 99 members. That’s a ratio of one legislator for every 10,000 citizems. California can’t approach that, but increasing the number to 240 would go a long way toward making at least one of the two chanbers, more representative.